Despite receiving rave reviews for high quality product and an accessible price point, Hailey Bieber has found herself in hot water off the back of the launch of Rhode Skin, her namesake skincare line released only days ago. It seems the model and business owner is being sued for trademark infringement over the name of her new line.
On Tuesday, June 21st representatives for Purna Khatau and Phoebe Vickers, co founders of fashion label, Rhode NYC, founded in 2013, issued a statement explaining “Ms. Bieber launched a…skincare line using the same exact brand as Rhode. She did this despite knowing of Rhode [the fashion label] and its prior rights. Ms. Bieber tried to buy the RHODE mark from Rhode four years ago.” An attempt to purchase which the co founders explain they declined.
Following in the footsteps of husband Justin Bieber, who named his fashion line Drew House in 2018, after his middle name, Rhode Skin is similarly inspired, using Hailey’s middle name. Lawyer for Rhode NYC, Lisa Simpson says of the decision to take legal action “It’s an unfortunate circumstance. We, of course understand that Hailey wants to use her middle name for the brand, but the law on this is clear; You can’t create this kind of brand confusion just because you want to use your name. What Ms. Bieber is doing is harming a minority co-owned business that two women have painstakingly built into a global brand.” In response, representatives for Rhode Skin told TMZ “[Hailey Bieber] owns the trademark for skincare, and the other Rhode holds the trademark for clothing.”
In a statement shared with Page Six, Rhode NYC co founders explain “We don’t want to sue Hailey; we want to celebrate her. As fellow women entrepreneurs, we wish her every success. Hailey has hard-earned star power and influence. She could choose any brand for her company. We have only the brand that we’ve built.”
The official account for the clothing brand has since made a statement on Instagram, reading “We’re confident in the lawsuit’s outcome, but we hope Hailey will now understand the harm we’re sure she never meant to cause and change her skin-care line’s brand. Thankyou to everyone for valuing our vision and supporting us.”
Reviews of the newly launched skincare brand have been overwhelming positive; consumers, creators and celebrities speaking highly of the products so far. But could Hailey Bieber’s big move into the beauty space be over before it has even begun?